A defiant Evo Morales was back in Bolivia on Thursday , railing against the United States after his presidential jet was held up in Europe under suspicions that U.S. intelligence leaker Edward Snowden had hitched a ride .

France , Spain , Portugal and Italy refused to let the president 's plane fly through their airspace after rumors surfaced that Snowden might be on board , Bolivian officials said . But Spain 's foreign minister , Jose Manuel Garcia Margallo , countered that regarding his country , saying in an interview , `` Spain does n't need to make any apologies . Our air space was never closed . ''

With no clear path home available , the flight 's crew made an emergency landing in Vienna , Austria , where it spent some 14 hours .

Snowden rumors temporarily ground Bolivian president 's plane

The Bolivians squarely put the blame on Washington for Morales ' unexpected side trip .

`` Message to the Americans : The empire and its servants will never be able to intimidate or scare us , '' Morales told supporters at El Alto International Airport outside La Paz late Wednesday . `` European countries need to liberate themselves from the imperialism of the Americans . ''

Speaking alongside Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro at a rally in a packed stadium in Bolivia Thursday evening , Morales said officials should analyze whether to shut down the U.S. embassy in his country .

The president , who expelled the U.S. ambassador in 2008 , said he would n't hesitate to boot the embassy , too .

`` Without the United States , '' he said , `` we are better politically and democratically . ''

In several speeches Thursday , Morales said he had been targeted for his indigenous background .

`` What happened during these days is not a coincidence , not a mistake like some governments say , '' Morales said . `` It is part of a policy to continue intimidating the Bolivian people and Latin America . ''

He added , `` Our sin is being indigenous and anti-imperialist . ''

Despite several attempts by CNN to get a response , Obama administration officials declined to comment on Bolivia 's allegations that the United States pressured European countries to deny landing rights to the Bolivian president 's plane , referring all questions to the European countries in question .

Outrage in Latin America

The incident has sparked a global diplomatic feud that 's roiled leaders throughout Latin America .

Presidents from five South American countries -- Argentina , Ecuador , Suriname , Uruguay and Venezuela -- met with Morales in Cochabamba , Bolivia , Thursday to discuss the matter . Diplomatic delegations from several others South American nations joined them .

The leaders issued a statement condemning the incident and calling for an apology

`` We demand the governments of France , Portugal , Italy and Spain issue the necessary public apology in relation to this serious incident , '' the statement said .

The situation , they said , was a flagrant violation of international treaties .

`` We reject the actions that clearly violated norms and basic principles of international law , like the inviolability of heads of state , '' they said .

The leaders said they supported Morales ' complaint to the United Nations High Commissioner of Human Rights over the matter , and they called for their countries ' foreign ministers to form a committee to investigate what happened .

In a statement Thursday , UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for dialogue between Bolivia `` and the European countries that barred the plane carrying President Evo Morales from flying over their airspaces this Wednesday . ''

According to a statement issued by his office , Ban `` urges the states concerned to discuss the matter with full respect for the legitimate interests involved . ''

Ecuador 's Correa sharply criticized the United States for its role in the situation . In a speech Thursday at the Bolivian rally , he read an excerpt from the U.S. Declaration of Independence and decried what he said was the country 's hypocrisy .

`` They keep having a double standard , '' he said .

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said the countries must apologize .

`` At least here in South America , when we make a mistake , we recognize it and at least ask for forgiveness from those we have offended . ... Let them apologize for once in their lives for what they have done , '' she said .

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro blamed the CIA , saying he believes the agency pressured governments to refuse to allow Morales through their airspace .

`` What just happened with the South American indigenous leader Evo Morales shows the level of madness and desperation that the -LRB- U.S. -RRB- empire has reached , '' he said .

Opinion : Snowden and a muzzled free press

So where is Snowden ?

The situation is the latest twist in what has become a global guessing game over Snowden 's next steps .

Snowden has admitted leaking classified documents about U.S. surveillance programs and faces espionage charges in the United States . He has applied for asylum in 21 countries , including Bolivia .

Snowden has been holed up at Moscow 's Sheremetyevo International Airport since June 23 . He arrived from Hong Kong .

` Unbowed ' Snowden seeks new havens

Morales , a left-leaning president who has long criticized the United States , had been attending a conference of gas-exporting countries in Russia , where he told the Russia Today news network that he would be willing to consider asylum for Snowden .

But Bolivian officials said accusations that an official aircraft would harbor Snowden were baseless .

`` We can not lie to the international community by carrying ghost passengers , '' Bolivian Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca said .

Snowden 's asylum options dwindle

The fallout

Moscow condemned the nations that blocked Morales ' path .

`` France , Spain , and Portugal 's actions -LRB- were -RRB- not friendly toward Bolivia and toward Russia , '' the Russian Foreign Ministry said . `` Moscow will demand strict observance of international law ... guaranteeing immunity of heads of state . ''

France denied it refused to allow the plane to enter its airspace .

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius called his Bolivian counterpart to express regrets about a delay in the confirmation to authorize the plane to fly over its territory , the French Foreign Ministry said .

The authorization was granted as soon as French authorities were informed the plane was the Bolivian president 's aircraft , the ministry said .

France `` never intended to deny president Morales ' plane access to -LRB- its -RRB- airspace , '' and the Bolivian leader is welcome in France , Fabius said .

France was among the countries where Snowden sought asylum . France said Thursday it had refused the request .

Italy also turned down Snowden 's asylum request Thursday . `` There are no legal reasons to accept this request , '' Foreign Minister Emma Bonino told the Italian parliament .

Meanwhile , in Iceland , lawmakers from several political parties have proposed a new law to grant Snowden citizenship after receiving a request from the former NSA contractor , lawmaker Birgitta Jonsdottir said .

On her website , Jonsdottir published what she said was the text of a letter from Snowden .

`` I want to extend my gratitude to the Icelandic parliament for considering my request for Icelandic citizenship , '' he said , according to Jonsdottir . `` I have been left defacto-stateless by my own government after communicating with the public . ''

Iceland has said it ca n't consider Snowden 's request for asylum there until he 's in its territory .

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Spain 's foreign minister says his country never closed its airspace to Morales ' plane

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South American leaders condemn the incident and call for a public apology

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Morales is back in Bolivia after plane delayed in Europe over rumors about Edward Snowden

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Italy denies Snowden asylum ; Icelandic lawmakers weigh giving him citizenship